


Lost

by TheMatthewExpress



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Dimension Travel, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Hunter!GeorgeNotFound, IRL Minecraft, M/M, Manhunt - Freeform, No Beta We Die Like Idiots in Love, Realistic Minecraft, Runner!Dream, Shifting realities, just guys being dudes, real life minecraft
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-03
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:41:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27856125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMatthewExpress/pseuds/TheMatthewExpress
Summary: Dream fell, he kept falling. The world around him kept spinning faster and faster while he fell in slow motion. The noises of his everyday life faded, being replaced with loud static. He waited, holding his breath for the impact of his floor to meet his body. It never came. He was instead met with the sounds of an ocean and the feeling of hot sand beneath him.He was just in his room and now he was on a beach.He opened his eyes, only to be greeted by a blade, inches in front of him.His eyes ran up along the blade to look at the beholder of the weapon, only to be shocked by what he saw."...George?"========================================================================================It's the midst of summer and Lady Luck hasn't been too kind to Dream.The effects of his heat messed with his mind, body and judgement but it at least couldn't get worse than that...right?That's what he thought until he woke up on a beach with a sword pointed directly at him, held by his best friend.Now he's on the run to survive with George close on his tail but what happens when they're forced to help each other survive through a blizzard in the middle of no where?
Relationships: Clay | Dream & GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 51





	1. Heat Waves and Sickness Strike the Unfortunate

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to Bea and Vivian for helping me edit and review this chapter.

The soft chatter fills his ears as Dream laid there, miserable. Miserable. Sweaty. Engulfed in hellish heat. Sheets clung to his clammy skin as he lays there. The hum on his fan provides some comfort but it’s not enough to help save him from the deathly sticky heat. Sweat dripped down his face slowly.

“Oh God, this is horrible.” Dream murmured, before peeling the sheets from his skin and sitting up. He shut the tv off, hoping that would cool down his room somewhat, and stood under the fan, trying to feel the soft semi-cool breeze. It could be worse. His AC might be broken but at least he had his fan. Vibrations could be heard admitting from near his bed. He shot a glance at his phone that laid there, shaking slightly as it continued to vibrate. Someone was calling him.

Great. Just what he needed. He felt miserable. He looked miserable. He _was_ miserable. Regardless, he walked over and picked up the device, reading the screen name. _Georgie is calling._ A slight smile tugged his lips, not one Dream himself noticed.  
  
“Heya George.” The male let out, a slight smile very much audible in his voice. Somehow, Dream could already feel himself being pulled at his misery. He paid no mind to it, in fact, he hadn’t noticed. 

“Clay where are you! MCC starts in 5 minutes! I’ve been calling you for the past hour and you hadn’t answered your phone! No one could get a hold of you. Not me. Not Karl, not Fundy.” George sounded pissed. This was the game he needed to have back to back to back wins on MCC after losing his strike in the MCC 13 games and a late valued team member is not what he needed.

_Shit._ “Ah, fuck I forgot about that...shit ah hold on.” He scrambled to his set up. His shorts and tank top began to stick to him uncomfortably as he paced around his room, getting prepared for the MCC. He was on the call with George still, mumbling a long string of curses before finally sitting down and pulling up Minecraft to login.

After sounding frustrated and honestly being frustrated, George finally spoke up again. “Clay?” He called out to his friend, concern embedded within every syllable. Dream froze, hearing his voice full of worry. “Yah I-I-” He let out a long sigh. “Sorry. Orlando got hit with an awful heatwave and it’s sucking so much right now.” He put his phone on speaker before he let his head fall into his hands. He felt sticky with sweat and honestly disgusting. Dream chuckled to himself, the silence seemingly eating at him slowly. 

“Are you sure you’re going to be able to even compete?” There it was again. The same concern that tug on his heart. In reality, no. He felt feverish, clammy, and mentally out of it. He thought about being the reason for George losing MCC. But... Dream didn’t want to disappoint him and frankly, the rest of his team. “Yeah, I should be. Just be my little cheerleader and I should be kicking ass in no time.” He chuckled, setting up his stream as George’s laugh sweetly rang in his ears. 

“Shut up you goof.” He mumbled in between his giggles and chuckles that we audible heard on the stream as people started to pour in, commenting on how he was crazy late for MCC. “George I’m streaming, let’s switch to Discord with Fundy and Karl.” Dream warned lowly, a smile still audible. 

“Aight aight, let’s head to discord. Just know, Fundy and maybe Karl, are going to yell at you for being late.” Dream rolled his eyes. Right. He was late. Late and making possibly tons of people upset. “On second thought, can we stay here? Just the two of us?” He asked sweetly, a hint of sarcasm laced in his undertone. He glanced at his stream’s chat as he finally got on the game, keeping in mind what he said to George while live on Twitch. In-game chat was going wild, his other teammates were yelling at him to join their VC in discord. 

“Nope! Sorry Dream but it looks like we need to head over to the vc.” George said in a slightly warning tone, just enough to hint to Dream to cut out his shipping shenanigans before it goes downhill like the “hardened clay” incident. 

“Alright alright.” Dream whined, huffing, complaining before finally hanging up and opening discord. Part of him regretted joining the VC and secretly wished that he and George could be on the call together, alone, just the two of them. He always loved it when they called off-stream, or even just chatted in general. Something about the way that George talked to him ignited a fire in a chest, a soft, low burning flame that dangerously grows hotter and brighter with each conversation.

“Dream! Where have you been?” Fundy called out, a whole collective of emotions could be heard in his voice. Relief, worry, anger, the list went on. 

“Sorry sorry. It’s currently absolutely fucking miserable where I’m at right now. I should be fine to play though! George is my cheerleader so I can’t lose with him cheering me on.” He poked fun at his friend who just rejoined the call. 

“I rejoined the call at the wrong moment.” A sigh was very audible from George, seemingly trying to come off as very annoyed but Dream knew that George didn’t really feel that way. Or maybe George was really annoyed and Dream just didn’t notice. Dream doesn’t seem to notice plenty of small details, whether on purpose or on accident.

“Well. At least you’re here now.” Karl chipped in, making Dream let out a silent sigh and lean back in his chair. It was evident there was a weird tension that was slowly being released, definitely due to the big man himself being late. Dream this time, did notice.

“Hey hey. I’m here now so let’s kick some ass and get George this back to back to back!” The proud grin that admitted brightly from Dream was clearly heard from his person to the rest of his teammates. He was doing his best to at the very least _try_ to motivate them, after all, it was the minimum he could do at this point. With starting to feel a pang of guilt, his confident grin turned into a sheepish smile as he just tried to focus on the game ahead of him.

This first game, thankfully for him, was Parkour. Not only was he extremely good at this game but this map in particular. So was Fundy thankfully. This could easily put his team in the top 3, maybe even first if Karl and George placed well too...that was if the heat didn’t sabotage his plans.

The games continued, dragging on. His brain felt fuzzy and his sense of time distorted. “Jesus Christ.” He used the back of his hand to wipe off the sweat that dripped down his face. He looked down, his shirt was soaked in sweat. His chair’s fake black leather material clung to him, irritating his skin. With each passing minute, he felt more groggy and blurry.

Worried comments continued to be directed towards him but Dream had blocked them out, focusing on the game. The comments died down once Ace Race had started, due to everyone being lasered focused. You could hear everyone curse and groan in frustration. Surprisingly, even at Dream’s worse, he was still in the lead. It was hard though. Hard to stay focused, to not be distracted by the tantalizing heat and scorching humidity. 

“It seems always something goes wrong when we’re teamed up, huh Dream?” The comment erupted a chuckle out of Dream. “You seem to be in great condition George. What are you, my bad luck charm?” He teased more into the joke, grinning proudly. 

“I probably just steal your luck so I can continue winning MCC,” George replied; a clear smile was audible in his voice. Dream pulled up George’s stream on a different screen, quickly muting it. He can see George smiling, his avatar jumping around the map as they both waited for the new round to begin. 

“Rude. George, make it stop man. I’m literally melting in my seat. I’m so sweaty and disgusting, I fully blame you for breaking my ac.” He whined, running his hand through his damp hair. “Fucking hell…” He sighed, wiping his hand on his shirt, a look of pure disgust. “This can’t be healthy.” He chuckled, worry was underlined in his tone as he murmured to himself. 

Dream glanced at George’s stream, he was smiling for a couple more seconds until his expression dropped. He kept looking at George’s worried expression, feeling a weight grow at his chest. He left out a huff, his mouth was uncomfortably dry. He had been leaving in this unruly heat for almost a week now. There was only so much of this heat his body could take, no point in being surprised that it was reacting in this way.

“Dude, after we win, go take care of yourself. Honestly, you sound sick as all hell.” Fundy chipped in, chuckling nervously. Dream was about to offer some bullshit rebuttal, saying he was fine and that it was nothing serious, just that he needed to be under a cool shower or something, until he heard his phone vibrate. 

[Gorg]: Dude, please take care of yourself once the event is over. I’ll be checking up on you to make sure you do.

Dream stared at the message, not saying anything or typing in response. After a brief moment, he just set his phone down and looked back at his computer with Minecraft up on the screen. “Yah I will. I’ll probably call someone that lives around here and ask if they could check up on me later but they’ll probably won’t be in any difference of a position...except their air conditioner is probably working.” He humored himself. 

“You know, just a funny lil suggestion, but you should probably get that fixed.” Karl, being the big brain he was, threw his two cents into the convo that got a laugh out of everyone. “Wow! Thank you, YouTuber, Twitch streamer, and Minecrafter extraordinaire, Mr. Karl Jacobs. Without your brilliant expertise, I would still be suffering.” The four of them all erupted in joyous laughter due to Dream’s very much sarcastic reply. 

“Seriously though, I already called someone to come fix the ac. The bad news is they’re fucking booked until next week!” He complained, slumping over and whining. Dream sat back up and leaned in his chair a little too fast and felt his head spinning. He bit his tongue, not wanting to worry the others again. “At least I still have my fan!” He tried to stay positive, knowing that being a negative Nancy wouldn’t help his position…that was until he looked up. 

He stared at his ceiling for a moment before his eyes caught sight of something. “YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME!” He got up and inspected his fan. No wonder it felt hotter in his room than usual. He tried turning it off and on again from the fan manually and then from the wall switch. Nothing. The fan stood there, still. He had been so focused on the game that he didn’t even notice the now incredibly drastic difference of being in a room without a fan.

He scoffed and sat back down, pissed that he hadn’t noticed his fan sooner. “Hey uh, Dream...you ok there pal?” Fundy asked carefully. “You won’t believe it...my fucking fan stopped working.” Abrupt laughter exploded out. To be fair, it was very funny seeing Dream was just talking about how he at least had his fan to keep him somewhat cool. 

“It’s not funny!” Dream shouted angrily, which only prompted a louder holler of laughter. “I shouldn’t be laughing but that timing was too perfect...are you sure you’re not doing a bit?” George asked, a small laugh in between each word.

“No! I’m not! My fan is actually broken! Fuck!” He pulled at his damp hair while the others laughed at his misery. He buried his head in his hands, groaning loudly at his friends. “Hate it here.” He mumbled under his breath. 

A new round began, it was their last round. They were currently in 3rd place with 132 coins from 2nd place and 374 from 1st. It all came down to this, the final round, Sky Battle. “Alright, this is an easy win for our team, we could use this to get into second, maybe even first without a doubt.” Part of him urged him to do poorly so he can leave early and not spectate the Dodgebolt event, the other part of him urged him to do well to spite the conflicting side. In the end, he decided to spite himself.

No way in hell did Dream remember the game being this hard. He’s fought these people time and time again, there’s no way this game was this hard. He had been close to dying multiple times and even died once during the event due to a sloppy mistake. It felt as if his whole world was rotating quickly and he was holding on by the tail-end. Dream gave it his all and even if it wasn’t much to him, they still managed to get into second place.

With the news being announced, the team cheered and excited shouts and joyous laughter. This only meant they had the Dodgebolt event and they’d win. George would have his back to back to back victory and Dream could leave happily in relief. The four of them, Karl, Fundy, George were the Green Guardians and their opponents were the Purple Pandas which had Sapnap, Tommyinnit, WilburSoot, and HBomb94. They were a hard team to beat but Dream knew that they would win. After all, the death of his fan would not be vain. 

“Alright George, you better win us MCC, my fan didn’t die for us to lose you, luck stealer.” He jabbed the joke at him lightly, grinning brightly as he shifted to become slightly more comfortable. Powering through MCC in his condition had been much easier than he’d expected, I mean sure, he ranked lower than usual except for Parkour due to it being the first game and his fan was still working so it was providing some comfort. Dream still felt like he was sweating gallons. His room, once a mildly unbearable hell had now turned into a sauna that was located in the devil’s castle. 

While Dream had the chance, he quickly got up to grab water. Another wave of vertigo crashed over him, like a tsunami crashing into a large city. It hit him so quickly and so hard that Dream almost fell, only managing not to by putting all of his weight on his table. Dream let out a hiss, annoyed with his current predicament but just decided to wait out the faintness. He rubbed his temple, seeing as an awful headache had begun to make itself known. 

Once better, he got up and grabbed a bottle from the fridge. The refreshing cool air from the appliance sent a sharp chill down his spine. He hadn’t realized how thirsty he really was until he emptied the bottle in a little under a minute when he took Advil for the incoming headache. Dream trembled, the water made his body feel as if it was freezing. “That can’t be good.” He sighed. Patches came up and rubbed herself against Dream’s legs, mewing softly. 

“Sorry girl, I promise I’ll feed you after MCC is over.” He grabbed another couple of bottles and walked back to his computer set up. There was still a couple of minutes left so he changed everything he was wearing. The shirt felt cool but it felt as if every time the fabric came in contact with his skin, it felt like it burned. Dream ignored it to the best of his ability and sat back down, getting back in the groove and set up. 

“Ok ok so, there has to be an order of who gets to shoot. We’re up against some really good players here. I think it should be Karl, George, Dream and then me.” Fundy suggested, seeing it was fitting for Karl to go first, with only minimal protest from Karl himself. 

They were on the battlefield. Friends vs. friends. Green Guardians vs. Purple Pandas. A fight for the ultimate for the crown. The opposing team got the first shot, getting Karl out immediately. Dream hissed a profanity under his breath, sweat dripping his face and barely missing his eyes, though it would be inevitable regardless. “Come on guys, we gotta be so irregular so they can’t touch us.” George said, jumping around along everyone else. 

Wilbur had gotten the arrow and aimed for Dream but ended up missing Dream very slimly. Cheers erupted from the four as George ran for both arrows. He aimed for Sapnap and released it, hitting him and eliminating him from the match. More cheers roared from the four of them, rooting for George. Dream could feel himself getting more cocky, knowing damn well that they got this game in the bag, even if the opposite were just as capable in beating them. 

Dream got the next couple of arrows, handing one to George. He aimed and released his shot, hitting TommyInnit and thus, ending him from the round. The arena grew smaller but they were still at an advantage with a 3 vs 2. Wilbur, once again taking aim, was able to get Fundy out of the round. Groans of slight frustration and little chatter of reassurance was shared between the Dream Team. At this point, Wilbur had passed the second arrow to HBomb, who aimed and missed George just barely.

He, George, ran up to the arrows and tossed one to Dream. George aimed at Will and Dream aimed at HBomb. George shot first, getting Wilbur out, followed by Dream eliminating HBomb from the round, thus winning the first round. Both in-game and stream chats went insane, as well as the team themselves.

The next round began and they were already off to a good start. Karl immediately ran for the arrows and took aim, getting Wilbur out on his first shot and missing on his second. HBomb grabbed the arrows and aimed. Dream was eliminated from the round, which he was surprisingly not too upset about. He got up quietly and went into his wash room.

He stared into his mirror, looking clammy and flushed. Dream turned on the faucet, letting the cool water run for a moment before running his head under the water, doing his best to cool himself off with this break he’s been so gracefully given. Once the water touched the back of his neck, it felt like it burned for a split moment, even though he knew it was cold water. As soon as he felt the split burning feeling, it was gone, replaced by chills, shooting up and down his spine. While his head was under a faucet, Dream grabbed a towel before pulling his head from under the water and rubbing his hair with the towel, vigorously, to get damped. The once dry, now dampened towel, provided some form of cool comfort, thus decided to leave it around his neck before heading back into his seat. 

By this point when he returned, it was only down to Karl and Tommy on the battlefield, with Karl having control over the arrows. His first shot missed, prompting groans from the other teammates but his second prompted purple fireworks, signalling that Tommyinnit was now out of the game. The crowd went wild and spirits were an all time high. “Let’s go!! We just need one more round and we won! Like we’ve practically got this tournament in the bag!” Dream exclaimed, his chat agreeing with him as the next round began.

This was where everything went downhill. It started with Tommy immediately taking out George on his first shot and Karl on his second. “This...could be bad.” Fundy mumbled, most likely a comment to himself but Dream couldn’t help but agree. Within 60 seconds, it became two v four. Dream was the third one to get out by Sapnap and thankfully missed Fundy.

“Cmon Fundy! Take them all out!!” 

“Karl no! That’s impossible. I’m at a four v one right now. There’s no way in hell I can take them all out.”

. “Not with that attitude you won’t.” Karl scoffed playfully, teasing the furry.

Fundy managed to get out Wilbur but in the end, was eliminated by HBomb. This did not look good on their part, seeing as they had gotten too cocky and played carelessly. The towel around Dream’s neck, while cooling him, was starting to irritate his neck uncomfortably. He ended up throwing it onto the floor beside him before rubbing the back of his neck. It burned his skin slightly, the feeling almost has one of a searing knife.

The next round began, one with a strong start for Dream’s team. George managed to get Sapnap out on his first shot and Wilbur on his second. Tommy and Hbomb both managed to get Fundy and and George out of the game. Karl grabbed both arrows and handed one to Dream. Dream shot at Hbomb and missed and Karl ended up getting Tommy out. They both felt like they were winning this round, no, the whole game...that was until HBomb got Karl out on the first arrow and Dream on his second. 

Dream cussed loudly, seeing how Hbomb got them both out was utter bullshit but didn’t express much further into the thought. 

“Ok, so...we’re tied now with the other team. We can’t lose this round.”

“Thanks George for that helpful ensight.” Dream commented, wiping the sweat from his forehead once again.

The final round began, nerves were high and tensions were as well. Between the two teams, the opposing team got the first shot, managing to get Fundy on the first hit but later missed Dream. Dream and Karl shared between the two arrows and got both Tommy and Wilbur out. Sapnap and Hbomb were against the Dream, George and Karl. Sapnap got George out and missed on his second shot. Hbomb got Karl out and missed Dream but Dream managed to reciprocate the blow and eliminated Hbomb.

It was a one v one now. Sapnap vs. Dream. Two friends now temporary enemies. “Nerves man…” Dream mumbled, biting his lip as he jumped around, trying to dodge Sapnap’s arrows and as well as not fall off the ledge into lava. Sweat dripped down his face once again, mostly from the heat but nerves weren’t an innocent factor either.

Sapnap, thankfully, missed all his shots. Dream grabbed the arrows, aimed and fired.

Missed.

He aimed again, doing his best to lock onto Sapnap’s position.

Steady.

Steady.

Blinded.

Dream squeezed his eyes shut, hissing from the string in his eyes. Sweat had finally dropped in his eyes. “Fuck! I can’t see!” He shouted, trying to open his other eye but the tears that threatened to spill clouded his vision.

“Dream! Are you ok?” George exclaimed, worry dancing all throughout his tone. 

“Y-yea...I’m fine..” He had his finger still pressed down on the mouse, his bow was therefore pulled back. “Ok ok...I’m going to be moving my mouse around slowly..let me know when I need to let go.” He stated calmly as he began moving his move slowly side to side. He could hear his own pulse beat. His knee bounced in anxiousness. This was the moment that could utterly make or break their victory. A few moments sped by before George shouted fire, in which Dream did. Fireworks and cheers erupted from the other three with the sound of fireworks going off. 

They had won.

“100% WIN RATE!! LET’S GOOOOOOO!!!’ Karl cheered, laughing happily along with the rest. Dream wiped his face in his shirt, laughing softly. He was out of breath, not realizing he was holding his breath during the intense moment. “I can’t believe we pulled that off!” Dream sounded dumbfounded, his mind was still processing the events that took place. 

There all four of them were, on the stage in golden crowns. “Congrats George on your back-to-back-to-back.” He croached his avatar rapidly, George doing the same to his own. Sapnap joined their group VC in the midst of laughter. 

“Hey George! Congrats on your third win in a row! Uh Dream, are you ok? My chat kept saying how you couldn’t see or something like that?”  
  


“Oh yah, what was up with that?” Fundy had added, clearly curious.

“Oh. So basically it’s like a sauna in my room and I had sweat pouring like rain and it got in my eyes.” He chuckled nervously

“Bro that’s kinda gross. I would suggest a shower or something but that’s just my professional opinion y'know?" 

“Shut the fuck up Karl.” Dream scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Yah, let me go take a shower in the middle of MCC. Great idea genius.” 

“Y’know, not appreciating the hostility coming from you, Dream. I’m going to have to call my mom on you again.” 

“Oh yah? And I’ll just call my mom so she can talk to _your_ mom. How’d you like that?” 

“Battle of the moms!” George shouted, laughing through each word. “You both act like you're still primary school.” 

“Shut up George.” He scoffed. “Alright. I think I’ve suffered enough for today. I’m going to go to take a shower then call someone for the fan.” He muttered, leaning back in his chair and pinched the bridge of his nose. The others said their goodbyes before Dream left the call and talked to his chat for a bit, reading out donations and thanking subscribers, new or old. 

There was a point where Dream just couldn’t continue and ended the stream, thanking everyone for joining beforehand. Painfully, he managed to peel himself from the fake leather chair, groaning in agony. His whole body irritated him, feeling like pins and flames licked and poked his body with every step he took. He felt sore, catching himself limp as he walked to the bathroom.  
  


He set his phone down, noticing that his phone was still open on George’s stream. Dream ran a bath, not really seeing it fit to be standing while his whole body ached. He dipped his feet in the tub and sent a picture to George as a joke, captioning the photo with ‘Everything hurts :( Also your stream is boring’. 

“Wow guys. Dream is sooo rude. If I’m so boring then stop watching the stream.”

Me  
| No <3

Georgie

| I see how it is. Also are you ok? You mentioned that everything hurts? 

Me

| Yah im fine. Think I might have caught some kind of bug. I’ll be fine though :)

Georgie

| I’m going to call you after the stream. 

Me

| You don’t gotta. Srsly im fine.

He closed out of the chat, seeing George responded but didn’t really care to open it. Instead Dream got in the bath. He dipped his foot in, wincing at the burning sensation the water inflicted on his skin. Figuring he might as well suck it up, Dream threw his clothes on the floor and sank into the water, flinching from how surprisingly hot it was. 

“Fuck...this sucks…” He groaned, leaning back against the tub. There wasn’t much to do as he soaked in the water so he decided to read George’s message. 

Georgie

| I don’t think you are. 

| How did you even get sick in the middle of a heat wave hitting florida?????

Me

| You worry too much. Besides it’s not impossible for it to happen.

Georgie

| I mean that’s true but i’m still worried about you.

Me

| Awwwee you care about me!! I love you too George.

Georgie

| Quit it.

Me

| I don’t think I will

Georgie

| Blocking you as we speak 

Me

| :( I’ll cry on your stream

Georgie

| Whatever. Done with you. I’m still calling you after I stream for a bit longer.

Me

| I see how it is >:(

Georgie

| ???????????

Me

| Your stream is more important than my declining health!

Georgie

| That’s not what I meant and we both know it.

Me

| Yah yah whatever  
| Go have fun on your stinking stream >:(

Dream wasn’t actually mad and George knew that, he caught himself grinning at their interaction. He usually found himself fondly smiling at their interactions. The warm feeling he gets when talking to George was much different than one he got when talking to, let’s say, Sapnap. Part of him felt jealous or angry. He wished George would end his stream and just call him so Dream could selfishly hog all of his attention. Even if George has never seen his face, that still didn’t change the surge of emotions he got washed over him every time they did manage to communicate in private.

Me

| Can we call :( 

| I’m bored and I wanna talk to you :(((

Georgie

| Needy aren’t we?

Me

| Nah

| Just bored

Georgie

| Give me a minute and I’ll call you.

Me

| :)

So he waited. He waited in the water, staring up at the ceiling. 

Dream sank deeper into water until he was completely under the water. It burned for a moment but soon became very warm and very safe. He stayed there, letting his mind wonder as he pondered about what it would be like in George’s arms. 

He hadn’t noticed it before. Dream had never noticed the burning heat that had become so increasingly harder to control. He hated the feeling somewhat. It felt big and bulky, taking up too much space in his chess. He wished he could just tell him how he felt and not hide it behind funny jokes or silly bits but Dream could never. Dream would never. Too much would be on the line for him to come out and let that fire in his chest finally roar brightly... besides George was straight, to his knowledge at least.

Yah...George wouldn’t be into him. God how he just wanted George to want him as much as he wanted him. It’s all he wanted...that was the perfect reality, _his_ perfect reality. 

Dream realized what his mind was thinking about and accidentally inhaled water, seemingly accidentally sabotaging himself. He sat up, splashing water everywhere and began to cough furiously. “Ah fuck..what the fuck was that.” He sighed, getting the ludicrous thoughts out of his head. He never felt that way about George and will never feel that way about George.

It would never happen.

Then why did he hesitate when he saw that George was calling, after Dream himself asked him too? Guilt maybe? For thinking that way about his best friend? He wiped his hands in a nearby towel and picked up the phone with George. “Hey.” He was breathless from his near-death experience, which George caught note of.

“Are you ok? You sound really out of it?”

“Yah I just...kinda almost drowned?” A nervous chuckle erupted from Dream. He was nervous...why? Nervous about George’s reaction or about talking to him in general? 

“What?! Are you ok? Jesus Dream you need to be more careful!” 

“Are you still streaming?”

“Yah? How’d you know?”

“You called me Dream instead of Clay...you always call me Clay off stream.” Dream pointed out the observation, trying to change the topic. 

“Well..yah. Are you sure you’re going to be ok alone? Y’know you can call Drista or you mum to come take care of you right?”

“Yah but, I’m fine. Besides I’m not alone! I have Patches!” He explained, getting out of the tub and wrapped a towel around his waist before draining the tub. Dream fed Patches as he promised earlier and quickly got dressed, which proved to be more of a challenge than he initially thought it would be. 

“Dream you’re being reckless.”

“No I’m not! I’m fine I swear! I just…” He stopped, thinking of what to say as he laid down on his bed. He was back to the familiar position that he had woken up to, laying on the bed, heat consuming his body with now a new feeling of aching pain.

“Just what? You know what actually...give me a minute, I’ll call you back.”

“I- alright?” He sounded confused but let George hang up. He laid there, staring at the ceiling once more. He was in a slight star shape position, listening to nothing but the sweet hum of silence. He hadn’t noticed his eyelids flicker close, eloped in the once scorching heat, turned somewhat comforting now. Chills shot down his spine, freezing him to his very core. Dream’s teeth clattered softly as another wave chills followed. His whole room spun, gaining speed with every passing moment. Dream felt like he was sinking. Like he was being consumed by his bed. Like he was being eaten alive. He couldn’t move and he couldn’t breathe. It was like something was pushing him into his bed further. Dream couldn’t find the strength to fight back so he just let his body sink further and further and further.

And further.

Until the sweet tone of his ringtone saved him.

Dream jolted upwards, sitting up and panting. “What the hell?” He pressed his hand down to see if his hand would fall through. Solid. He swallowed nervously before answering his phone, knowing it was George without even having to look. 

“Clay?” George asked softly. By the sound of things, George just ended his stream.

“Y-yah? Hey George…” Dream’s lip quivered when first speaking, seeing he was pretty shaken up by the feeling of his bed eating him whole, or rather, felt like it did.

“Are you ok? I was only gone for like 30 minutes? What happened?” 

“Honestly...I couldn’t tell you even if I wanted to...I don’t really know.” Dream was taken back when he heard that George had left for half an hour, considering it didn’t feel anywhere near that length of time. He didn’t feel safe on the bed anymore so he stood up, immediately regretting the decision. His stomach churned and twisted. His mouth watered dangerously as he mumbled a brief ‘excuse me’ and ran to his bathroom after dropping his phone on his bed.

Dream hunched over his toilet and threw up what little he ate this morning. He felt weak, like little something was sucking the life out of him bit by bit. Dream laid there, wasting away for a moment before finding the rapidly deteriorating strength within him to sluggishly walk back to his phone. He felt so tired and so weak all of a sudden. Dream begged for this all to stop, all this torment that his body is inflicting onto him, it was truly like he was in hell on earth. 

“Hey…” He sat on his chair, which was uncomfortable but didn’t want to be on his bed. His voice was horse and groggy and sounded extremely pained.

“Clay! Are you alright? You were gone for a while and I was really worried about you. God, you sound worse than you did when we played.” 

“Yah...Y’know how when people sleep they get sicker? Well I think I took a nap while you were gone and now I feel like complete shit.” He chuckled, grinning weakly to himself.

“Well at least you got some sleep? Even if it was just thirty minutes.”

“Yah I suppose you’re right. What were you even doing for all that time?”

“Well I ended the stream and I was about to call you back but Alex dmed me on discord saying that I needed to get on the SMP for some “official king business” and I did that for like 20 minutes. After that I kinda hung around until I remembered that you were feeling really shitty and I logged out to call you.”

“Thank God you did.”

“Why do you say that?”

“I-...Well don’t laugh but the weirdest thing happened while you were gone.”

“Go on…”

“I must have drifted off or something but I felt awake. It was almost like I was paralyzed or something but I couldn’t move. I couldn’t find the energy to move my body and I was just...really tired.”

“I mean that’s weird but maybe it’s sleep paralysis? Though I’ve never heard that happening in a 30 minute nap.”

“There’s more. I felt myself being pulled down, like I was sinking. It felt like my whole bed was trying to swallow me whole and I just kept sinking...it was actually really scary but the whole time it happened, I couldn’t find it within myself to care and it was only when you called that I snapped out of it. It was like I was stuck in a weird trance.” 

“Dude are you like? Possessed?” George laughed, trying to lighten the mood.

“No I think it’s just the heat fucking with my brain and body. It’s like 100 degrees here man. It honestly makes me wish I could live in the UK...with you.” The last part was more of a whisper. A secret confession that he dare not spill out to anyone else. 

“I would like that. A lot actually. You still haven’t shown me your face you know?”

“Well if you’re so on board with me living with you, why not just wait until then?”

“That’s so cruel! Quit the playing Clay.”

“I’m serious! I will pack everything right now.一”

“Clay..”

“一Besides! Wouldn’t that be amazing?! I can be finished in一”

“Clay seriously I-”

“一about a week max and then I’ll book a ticket! Might be pricey though bu一”

“Clay stop it!” George shouted. Deep down, George must have knew that Dream was being serious and Dream wondered if that hurts to him.

“What? I was just messing around.”

George didn’t say anything for a moment before he sighed, followed by a faint chuckle.

“Sure you were but let’s talk about _after_ you’ve recovered. I don’t want you overworking yourself while you are in that state.”

“You promise?” 

“Yah, I promise.” 

Dream’s smile grew large as he became unbelievably happy...but part of him was hesitant. Was he really about to leave the life he knew behind to go live with someone who’s never even seen his face? Maybe George was right and it was just the heat making him irrational. That wasn’t even including the whole situation with migration and citizenship and not to mention, the world was still recovering from Covid-19. 

Still, part of him wanted to dream.

“Alright then, I accept your terms and conditions.” Dream replied, a sly tone casted into his voice.

“Good...now just get better. Go to a hotel for a few days until you can get the mechanic to your house.”

“Might just have said the first good suggestion I’ve heard all day.” He chuckled and stood up, walking to his bed.

Dream’s biggest mistake.

The room span once he sat up again.

He hadn’t noticed how dizzy he really was.

Or how painful the headache was.

Or how George’s voice faded once he took his first step.

Or how his vision faded to black.

Dream fell, he kept falling.

The world around him kept spinning faster and faster while he fell in slow motion. 

The noises of his everyday life faded, being replaced with loud static. 

He waited, holding his breath for the impact of his floor to meet his body. It never came. He was instead met with the sounds of an ocean and the feeling of hot sand beneath him. 

He was just in his room and now he was on a beach. 

He opened his eyes, only to be greeted by a blade, inches in front of him. 

His eyes ran up along the blade to look at the beholder of the weapon, only to be shocked by what he saw.

"...George?"

He didn’t notice the look of pure hatred in his best friend’s eyes.

Or how scared shitless he was by the bloodlust written on George’s face.

Or the mask on his face.

Maybe he did notice.

And just chose to look away.


	2. Trapped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh so I wrote most of this in a hospital and you can really tell.
> 
> Thank you to Vivian for helping me edit this chapter.

_Run_.

Run the voice in his head said.

“George...what are you doing?” Dream looked up at him in sheer horror as George raised his sword to pierce him. 

To strike him through the heart.

To end his life.

In some twisted irony, this felt beyond familiar, like he’s done this time and time again but this time, in real life.

George had his sword raised high above him, in any second, George could strike him down and that would end the story of Dream and his life...but George hesitated.

Dream saw that George stopped and shoved his hand in his pocket and felt a small, marble-like sphere, and threw it behind him. He zipped away, teleporting further into the desert but George was not far behind him. Dream could have time to contemplate his situation later but his best friend is currently, as one can suspect, is trying to kill him.

So Dream ran. 

He ran until he felt like he was going to collapse then ran further. He heard arrows whizzing past his ear, none hitting him for George was a terrible shooter.. He glanced behind him, seeing George pulling back his bow once more. 

Dream stopped, staring straight at George, not understanding why he did so. He saw George slowly walk towards him and he finally spoke to him.

“You’re not the same Dream I know...did you hit your head or something?” There was a slight smirk on his face as there was a killer shot pointed directly at Dream’s chest.

Dream studied the terrain around him, as he thought of a response to the man in front of him. He noticed a small dip in the sand between George and himself.

He thought about doing something that would break the sand and so either Dream and George fell or George alone would fall.George could fall and Dream could run away and work on how to get home, back to _his_ George.

But he couldn’t let this George die either.

  
  


“You asked me ‘What are you doing George?’ Like we haven’t been doing this for months...No, something’s off about you.” George continued to speak as Dream continued to think of a plan of escaping. It was much easier to plan this type of thing in a game but it was much harder in his case.

  
  


“Why did you hesitate?” Dream asked, his mouth was parched and his stomach twisted and punched while his heart beated harder than a drum in his ears. He sounded shaken and scared.

“Shut up.” George snapped, annoyed his mistake was called out but anger soon melted into a devilish smile, which adorned his face, though his eyes were still full of twisted bloodlust and distance. The smug expression sent chills down Dream’s spine but he remained still and expressionless the best he could. His best though wasn’t very good. His hands were shaking and he felt like he couldn’t breathe well. He didn’t feel sick anymore at least so that was a slight plus side.

“Hope you have another pearl yellow boy, you’re going to need it!” George shot the arrow straight up into the air. Dream watched the arrow in horror. He didn’t even know if he had another pearl on him. Instinctively, he ran backward, trying to put some dip in between him and the dip as much as possible.

George on the other hand, remained still, watching Dream running. The arrow hit the sand right in the middle of the cavity. The force of the arrow caused the earth to swallow the area of sand whole..along with George. 

The ravine was much bigger than the dip in the sand would allude to, catching George off guard. A yelp escaped his lips as fell into the darkness below him. Dream on the other hand barely escaped the ravine's mouth. He heard George yell and watched him fall.

“George!” He didn’t know what prompted him to react in the way he did but, almost like it was on impulse, he ran and jumped after George. He didn’t know what he was doing but he managed to grab George’s hand and toss his last pearl back up towards the surface. 

Dream closed the gap between him and George with a tight hug, closing his eyes tightly and praying the pearl landed on the sand..so they both could be safe. The ground was rapidly approaching and the darkness seemed to be rapidly consuming the both of them. 

Suddenly it was bright.

The hot sand singed Dream’s cheek as he laughed breathlessly. “Oh my god...it worked..” He let go of George and sat up and fixed his mask back over his face, panting breathlessly, still in total denial that he managed to pull that stunt off. 

George was looking back at the ravine in total shock. He had taken his glasses off as he looked at his near-death grounds to see the scenery. “Why did you save me?” 

“What?” Dream sounded confused at George’s question. The hurt and confused expression on George’s face made his heart pang with guilt. Dream studied George’s face and noticed the heterochromia. One blue. One brown. Just like his old Minecraft avatar. There it was again, that nauseating rush of déjà vu. It made him feel sick, like the world was laughing at him again. This was a sick joke ran by his subconscious.

“Why...why did you save me? You had your chance to run away and leave me to die. You gave up your one chance to finally be free..so why didn’t you?..” 

“I-” _Maybe it’s because you’re my best friend. Maybe it’s because I care about you more than I ever cared about myself. Maybe it’s because I love you._

“I don’t know.” He looked away from George, unable to stand the look on his face.

“Run.”

“What?” He snapped his head back at George, who was putting on his glasses again. 

“You heard me, You saved me so I’m giving you a head start. It’s only fair.”

Dream wanted to protest so badly but he only got up and walked away from George. There were so many things he wanted to ask him. So many things he wanted to say to him. But he wouldn’t get the chance to.

Dream scanned the terrain and saw a mountain range. He could stay there and collect his thoughts and plan where to go from there. He looked back at George one last time, who was just watching him walk away, before running to the mountain range. 

It was a pretty tall mountain but it looked climbable. It was steep but thought it shouldn’t be much of a problem. He was worried about the top though. He was clothed with a dark green cloak and clothes that made him look like a medieval trained assassin. Dark brown pants, a fitted black long-sleeved shirt and a leather belt, arm strap, and thigh strap, assorted with daggers and potions, and lastly, a large satchel that felt heavy and looked bulky, like it was almost full. While yes, it would keep him warm enough in most locations and conditions, he wouldn’t stand a chance in a raging blizzard. 

There would probably be no blizzards. Like his luck couldn’t be _that_ bad...right?

The climb was tough and slightly unbearable but he made it to the top without any other complaints other than loss of breath. He peaked over the edge and saw a figure walking towards him, figuring it was George or something. There was fresh snow on the ground, seemingly untouched by nature’s little workers. Dream silently once again prayed, this time hoping his shoes were waterproof. 

What felt like minutes were in reality, hours. Dream had been walking aimlessly, nightfall was dangerously approaching him which pang worry in his chest. “Maybe this _wasn’t_ the best idea,” he grumbled, feeling the wind pick up against his neck. Dream brought his hood over his head, his hand grazing over his mask momentarily. His breath was hot and kept his face warm but made it damp and clammy. He stopped and took his mask off. Seeing his mask shot a terror fueled chill down his spine. It was a smiley face but one that looked terrifying. 

He examined the mask more, thinking it was a curiously, yet eerie artifact. It was like a two-way mirror. He could see everything through the mask yet no one could see anything that covers the mask. He scoffed, thinking that this was some subconscious joke on his character, still it terrified him. 

He continued to march on, unable to find a cave to relax in or anything that could be seen as shelter. It was already pitch black which made his search practically impossible for him. To make things worse, it was starting to snow. The little visibility he had, dropped drastically when the snow started to pick up. To make things worse, he had no items to create light. He needed to find shelter before this storm worsened. 

Step. 

Step.

Stumble. 

It was getting harder to walk through the snow. His feet were wet and frozen. He must have lost feeling in his feet hours ago; he’d be lucky if he didn’t lose them after this. Maybe, just maybe, if he were to simply, pass away, or fall unconscious, he could go back home. Maybe, just maybe, he’d be back home in the middle of June. Back to Patches. Back to Drista and Mom. Back to Nick and the rest of the SMP. _Back to George._ This was some sick dream to him, yet it felt real. He was freezing, shivering, pain striking with each step. It felt real but he hoped it wasn’t.

It was getting harder to breathe, it was like the air in his lungs were being squeezed out. He wondered if he was hiking on an incline. The more he walked, the harder it snowed and the harder it became to see and breathe. His mask was either saving him or trying to suffocate him and Dream hadn’t figured out which one it was yet. His cloak was soaked and so was his shirt and pants. 

For a moment, Dream swore he saw his shadow. He ignored it, saying it was a trick of the eyes. Then he saw it again. This time, he stopped and waited for his eyes to focus on his surroundings. There it was, a faint shadow in his shadow. He turned around, trying to find the source of the faint light, and saw a figure. Dream tried to walk away from the figure coming towards him but fell. 

He fell and this time, he hit the ground.

The once soft, cold snow, was now compacted underneath Dream’s chilled body. Against his will, his strength depleted and his vision blackened, the last thing he saw was the mysterious figure walking towards him.

* * *

Clay’s body was attached to so many wires, so many cables to keep his vitals in check and monitored. Drista sat by her brother’s bed, taking note of just how many wires her brother was attached to.

11...12…13...14...

It was disheartening to see, considering no one understands what exactly is wrong with Clay. Heat exhaustion they said. Something that doesn’t result in a coma yet here Clay was, confusing all the doctors alike. All we can do is keep him comfortable for now they said. It made Drista nervous. She hadn’t cried once. No ma’am. She promised herself she wouldn’t. For Clay. She had to be strong. For Clay. After all, that’s what he’d want, at least that what she thought anyway. 

Nick and George were on their way to Miami already, both declared a family emergency within the same day, making their fans very suspicious and concerned with what was going on. Some have already noticed Dream’s radio silence since MCC, which was unlike him, considering he won especially. Some suggested that it was a big prank and they were going to surprise them and others suggested something might have happened that relates to Dream. Theories burst to the roof, to the point some of the members of the SMP had to address the situation and told them to respect the Dream Team’s privacy. The other SMP members were already given the rundown of what happened, all agreeing to not address what happened without Mother Dream’s consent. 

It was stressful for everyone who was friends with Clay. It felt like the world was chipping, getting closer to shattering with each day the doctors are confused with Clay’s condition. With each day he doesn’t get treatment. With each day he doesn’t wake up.

Drista continued to stare at Clay, wondering what he was doing inside that head of his. Like if he was on an adventure or simply floating through the black void. If he was starting wars and ending conflicts or if he was walking through the blank abyss. Clay always looked so peaceful when he was asleep but right now he doesn’t even look alive. It sucked, it fucking sucked. Why him? What did Clay do to deserve this? 

Drista blinked back a few tears that threatened to spill. No, she couldn’t. She’s had a few close calls but she had to be strong like she promised Clay.

Her mom came in after talking to the doctors again. She appeared as if fifty years away from her life got stripped away from her, right through her fingertips. 

“What did they say, mom?”

Nothing. Mother Dream’s expression saddened, Drista could almost guess the answer. 

“Well..” She walked over and sat down next to her daughter and held her hand as she looked over at her son. “They don’t know when he’ll wake up...or even if he will. Could be hours, could be years and anything in between...he...he…” She squeezed her daughter’s hand. Drista knew what her mother meant, she could see tears forming in her eyes. The truth was, they were both terrified. It has only been a few days and the doctors are already considering the worst. 

“George was wondering when the announcement will be allowed to be made..”

“I don’t know Drista...” Mother Dream sighed and reached over to fix Clay’s hair. Clay looked pale, but at least he was breathing on his own still. He had an oxygen mask which fogged up every other moment. He was still alive and so they both knew there was a chance Clay would wake up...he had to.

“...Maybe when his friends arrive? Maybe a little bit after? Maybe when he wakes up? I don’t know Drista.” Mother Dream shook her head, pinching the bridge of her nose as she released a long, stress-filled sigh. 

“...I’ll let George know then,” Drista said, making no effort towards her phone. She sat there quietly, still in a daze. Part of her hasn’t comprehended what happened, the other part of her doesn’t want to because the more she did, the more it became harder to handle the frenzy of guilt, sadness, pity, and anxiety that came like a whirlwind and the urge to show her weakness increased. 

“I’m so sorry Clay…” Her voice broke into a whisper when she murmured her brother’s name. No one knew what was wrong with him and if anything, that scared Drista more than anything else could. She knew one thing for certain, if they didn’t figure out what was wrong with him, Drista could lose a brother and Mother Dream would lose a son.

And for the first time in a long time, Drista cried.

* * *

Dream woke up, to his dismay, not back in Florida. His body felt sore and his nose was stuffy. It was an effort to sit up but once he did, he gazed across the room. It was a curious sight to see. He was in a cave where there was a fireplace in the center, cooking steak, an empty bed, placed near the mouth of the cave and the fireplace. The cave itself was damp, most likely from the storm howling outside. It smelled moldy and nothing was illuminating the cave beside the fireplace itself. 

Outside was a different nightmare. It was snowing harder than when he was marching through. The wind screeched its off-key song louder than Dream would care to hear but he couldn’t do much about it now. He knew one thing for certain, Dream would have not survived he continued to walk. It looked still dark out, which made him wonder how long he’s been asleep for.

“You’re lucky I found you when I did.” A voice said behind him.

Dream screamed and jumped, whipping his head to find George leaning against a man-made cobblestone wall. 

“George...I-”

“Don’t sound so surprised. You know you were in pretty awful condition when you fell over in the snow. Your feet were literally frozen. Be thankful I had a few health and regen potions on me.” He tossed a bottle of a bright, pale pink elixir to Dream, to which he struggled to catch for a moment.

“Man..you must have hit your head pretty hard to make such a rookie mistake like that.” George sighed, placing his glasses on top of his head.

Dream was silent, simply staring at the bottle George had tossed to him. So many questions ran through his brain. Why hadn’t George left to die? Why was he trying to kill him? Once again, it felt like his world was caving in on him. 

“Why did you save me?” 

“A life for a life...a pretty simple concept.”

“Why did you hesitate the first time...you could have killed me then.”

George was silent for a moment, he was looking out towards the entrance of the cave. Dream could read his face clear as day. He looked disgruntled and very much upset with himself. The hatred fueled flame that once danced in George’s eyes was now extinguished...for now at least.

“I don’t know...you sounded terrified. It could have been an act but-” He stopped himself, Dream could tell George was thinking about if he wanted to continue with what he was saying. 

“It’s really funny y’know? We’ve been dancing around each other for months, playing this wild game of cat and mouse...you always treated it like it was just a game, not life or death. Then suddenly, one day you’re on the beach and acting like a young boy who was sentenced to death. I can’t tell if you’re the Dream everyone has warned me about or an imposter.” George looked back at Dream, looking conflicted.

Oh, what he wished he could tell the George clone in front of him so many things but he’d probably just look and sound insane. And maybe he was. 

“Did you see my face?” Dream didn’t understand why he was concerned about that, he supposed it felt wrong to let this George see it first instead of his George. It was a silly reason, even he knew that deep inside.

“No...you wouldn’t let me.”

_Good._ Dream just simply nodded before asking the next questions only moments later.

“How long have I been out?”

“A few days. You kept slipping in and out of consciousness and said a lot of weird stuff.” 

“Like…?”

“I couldn’t tell you even if I wanted to. I don’t know how to explain it but it was like you were from a different world almost.”

Dream couldn’t help but chuckle. Technically, he was but the whole situation was so stupid and unreal. 

“This blizzard isn’t letting up any time, is it? Seems like you’re stuck with me for now huh? Unless you’re going to kill me in my sleep, can we truce until we get out of this mountain range?”

“Well...you’re kinda useless to me in your state as of now. I really do think it would be better to just kill you right now. Besides, the Emperor never specified whether you had to be dead or alive, just that I had to bring you back to His Majesty.” George said, pointing his sword toward Dream. 

Dream was still. He wasn’t as scared as he thought he’d be but he still had to find a way to convince George not to kill him. He looked around the cave and at the cobblestone wall, then at the sword. It was a dark material with diamond accents.

“Netherite.” Dream murmured to himself then looked at the bed, it looked like ones he’s crafted a million times in Minecraft. The pearls, the ravine, George as his Minecraft avatar..it started to click. 

“What are you on about?”

“I might not be much use to you but I do know how this world works better than possibly anyone. I know how to make every possible potion that could turn you into a literal god and the best ways to kill every possible creature that we could possibly come across and I know the best enchantments for every tool and weapon..” Dream stated sternly, his life was on the line once more and he knew that if he wanted to go home, he needed to play by this world’s rules, and that meant becoming the character he created. 

His heart raced, his pulse beating in his ears. George’s blade was a mere couple inches from his face once again. 

“And the nether?”

Bingo. That’s the exact confirmation that Dream needed to secure the feeling in his gut.

“I know how to get in and out of bastons and fortresses with everything we need and more without really putting our lives on the line.”

“That’s impossible! Anything about the Nether is severely classified, no one knows anything about it except for the Emperor. You’re lying Dream.” George inched the blade closer to Dream’s face, causing him to lean back a bit.

“And where do you think you’re getting your blaze powder to make the potions from? Say...what if I showed you?” He placed his hands up as if he was surrendering. “And I would never lie, I’m a very honest person...you should know this George.”

George glared at Dream for a moment then dropped the position, sheathing his sword. Dream let out a breathy sigh, not realizing that he was holding his breath. 

“Fine, we’ll call it truce for now. I swear Dream if this is another one of your tricks, I will not hesitate to kill you.”

“That’s fair I guess.” Dream had the biggest grin on his face, not that George could see it though. This felt bittersweet to him like he knew he shouldn’t be getting too comfortable with the George clone but it felt like the good ol’ days where in the beginning, it was just Dream vs. GeorgeNotFound, runner vs, hunter...except this time, in real life. In a way, this was exciting for him. He used to wonder what this kind of thing would be like in real life but at the same time, it deeply terrified him.

“You should sleep. I’m going to go back mining.”

“What, you're not gonna watch me or restrain me?-” He tilted his head to the side, like a confused puppy. Dream could very easily escape and in mind, he was technically a prisoner. “-I mean, you caught me? I could technically run away and break the truce while you’re in your mines...unless you were planning on letting me go after we leave this range?-” He said, interlockig his fingers and letting his chin rest on top of them. “-If that were to be the case, how sweet of you George~,” 

George’s face twisted into a disgruntled, disgusted snarl before he simply laughs. “Sure wise guy, go out there in the freezing cold. You must have some kind of death wish Dream if you really think you can just go out there and even last one hour. You’re cocky for your own good. I know you think so but this is not a game!”

_This is not a game._

That phrase echoed Dream out of his roleplayer mindset, leaving him back in the frightened position. He didn’t say anything, only simply looking away from George, towards the mouth of the cave. The snow hadn’t lightened up one bit which for some reason, was disheartening to see. George was right and he was in no position to deny that.

George scoffed, mumbiling something under his breath, Dream couldn’t pick up what he said but he knew it wasn’t good.

There he was.

Alone again.

And it was even harder to breathe now that George had left.

Dream took his mask off, his hand was trembeling as he sat it in his lap. He bit his lip roughly, to stop it from shaking. He was alone but he hated the fact he felt weak and powerless in his situation. 

_This is not a game._

No, this was life or death. The real world. It was probably a coincidence this world worked the same way as Minecraft but if he dies―oh my god what happens when he dies? Would he just go home or would that be it? No, that can’t be how he goes...can it? Will he never to get to see his family and friends ever again? The thought sent panic spiriling down his spine. It was getting harder to breathe, like his lungs were being compressed; flattened. Dream felt to as if he was drowning, like dark, murky waters were surronding him and forcing the air out. He felt like he was dying.

He was dying.

He was alone.

He was going to die alone.

Dream’s vision clouded. The room around seemed to darken and the little mocking voice in his head drowned out the roaring wind. 

_You’re alone, and you always will be._

Dream shook his head, trying to get rid of the mocking voice in the back of his head, telling him sweet little lies that crushed him so effortlessly. 

_You’ll never see them again._

He could feel eyes watching him. Staring at him. Mocking him. Laughing at him. Thinking he looked weak. 

“...Shut up…” He mumbled out, placing his hands over his ears. Hot, salty tears streamed down his face and landed on his mask. In some twisted irony, it made it look like the mask was crying itself as the tear now chilled tears rolled off it.

Dream’s heart beated loudly in his ears, not loudly enough to drown out the little annoying voice in his head. He was way out of league here. He right now was not the faceless Youtuber/Twitch Minecrafter that lived in the middle of Florida with his cat. No, he was Dream. He was the merciless slayer that doesn’t care for anything else other than his desires and motives that he roleplayed as on the SMP...and deep down Clay was terrified by this truth. How did he become the very character he played? The reality was he needed the George clone by him. Even though it wasn’t his George, it was a George that was enough to comfort him. 

“Just leave me alone!” He pleaded out, breaking out in a full sob, burying his face in his knee. It’s been years since Dream has cried this hard to the point it was starting to give him a headache.

“Dream?...” 

Dream stopped. Not a sound admitted from him. No cry. No response. Not even a breath.

“H-hey George..” He sloppily placed his mask back on, only his mouth could be seen. It was obvious he’d been crying, which by the pity on George’s face and the concern in his voice, Dream knew he caught on. Great. Absolutely wonderful.

“Hey...um...stop that. You look gross and dumb.”

“Wow, thanks.” He fixed his mask so it was on his face properly as he thanked him sarcastically. 

“Well, you’re welcome...I guess?” He sat by Dream, but there was still a good few feet between them, guess George didn’t want to be too careless.

The comment made Dream chuckle. It was so stupid and it was really obvious that George didn’t know what he was doing, especially considering that they were supposedly enemies.

George looked like he wanted to ask what happened or why was he crying or shouting but he never did, which Dream was thankful for because it wasn’t really something he could explain to him, at least right now he couldn't. 

“Hey um...I’m…” He sighed. Dream figured he was trying to apologize which just made him more awkward, he wasn’t sure what exactly he was apologizing about.”

“It wasn’t really...y’know…” The words couldn’t find themselves to form correctly. He wanted to tell George it wasn’t his fault (even though it technically was but let’s not look too deeply into the details) and that he was fine but he just hoped George got the message.

“I-...yah I get it.” George kinda chuckled and stared at the fire in front of them. The awkward silence between the two grew. At least he got what Dream was trying to say, at least he thought so anyway.

_This feels like high school all over again._ Dream chuckled to himself with the thought in mind. George looked at him confused like he was practically asking for an explanation with his facial expression, which made Dream only giggle more.

“What’s so funny yellow boy?”

“I’m not yellow.” 

“What?”

“Oh my god, I forgot you were colorblind…” 

“I...wait how did you know? I never told you that?”

“I- uh- well you keep calling me yellow boy so I...um...assumed.”

“Mhm sure.” He rolled his eyes then looked away at the wall away from Dream, like it is so much more interesting than the fire in front of them or even Dream.

“...What color are you then?”

“Well...My cloak is dark green.”

“Thank goodness you don’t actually wear a piss colored cloak.” 

That made Dream become the embodiment of a kettle once more like he has so many times in his videos and around his friends.

“Oh come now, it wasn’t even that funny…” George shook his head in disappointment and sighed as Dream continued to laugh. It really wasn’t that funny but it made him think about all the times he joked about being a pissbaby in front of thousands of people or his pissing the bed tweets. The warm feeling in his chest returned and he felt at peace with himself again. It was weird how quickly he felt alright again but the same could happen if he were with anyone, even a complete stranger.

At least he wasn’t alone right now and that’s all that mattered to him.

_Thank you for being here, George._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dream's words and actions towards George can be taken as both romantic or platonic btw just wanted to point that out there.
> 
> Let's hope it doesn't take me too long to write the next chapter. While this chapter was purely about them, the next one is more world-building.


End file.
